Spring and cushion structure



June y12, 1951 H. s. KARPEN SPRING AND CUSHION STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheetl Filed Jan. 13, 195o INVENTOR.'

. i' INVENTOR:

:2 Sheets-Sheet 2 v H. S. KARPEN SPRING AND CUSHION STRUCTURE @MRNEYSFiled Jan. 15, 1950 June 1.2, l

Patented June 12, 1951 2,556,924 SPRING AND CUSHION s'rRUcTURE Harry S.KarpemChicago, Ill., assignor to S. Karpen & Bros., Chicago, Ill., acorporation of Illinois Application January 13, 1950, Serial No. 138,492

4 Claims.

Y This invention relates to a spring and cushion I structure. Theinvention is particularly useful in connection with box springs and amattress which are united in a unique manner.

In the manufacture -of mattresses and box springs and mattresses withseparate covers and 'to use the mattress as a separate article over thebox spring. This combination requires separate, complete and relativelyexpensive covers and, in use, the mattress often gets out of alignmentwith the box spring therebelow, thus detracting from the neat appearanceof the superposed structures and also causing the mattress to becomeuneven along the edge portions protruding over the box spring unit.

An object of the present invention is to provide a structure in whichthe mattress is constantly maintained in true alignment with the boxsprings while at the same time permitting :.,5 springs, it has been thepractice to form the box the spring and mattress structures to be unitedthrough the use of a single muslin or other strip, the structure beingso arranged that a side pocket is provided for the tucking in of sheets,covers, etc. A still further object is to provide a cushion and boxspring structure permitting the ,tucking in 0f a covering material andthe efobjects and advantages will appear as the specication proceeds.

The invention is shown in an illustrative embodiment, by theaccompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a boxspring and 4mattress structure embodying my invention;` Fig.

2, an end view in elevation; Fig. 3, a view similar to Fig. 2 butshowing a portion of the box springs structure in section; Fig. 4, aview similar to Fig.

v3 but showing the mattress structure also in section; Fig. 5, anenlarged broken sectional detail view showing an edge portion of themattress and box spring structure; Fig. 6, a perspective view of theunited spring and mattress structures showing a sheet or cover tuckedinto the pocket space between the mattress and box spring structures;and Fig. 7, a perspective view showing a corner portion of the mattresslifted to expose the pocket space therebelow.

In the illustration given, A designates a box vspring unit; B designatesa mattress unit; and C designates a muslin or other strip which unitesstructures A and B.

The spring unit A may be of any suitable or desired construction. In thespecific illustration given there is provided a frame I0, springs I I,and a layer of fibrous or soft covering material I2 overlying the springstructure. A cover I3 extends about the sides of the spring unit and aborder portion I4 extends inwardly from the sides. The width of theborder may be approximately one-fourth of the width of the unit A or anydesired Width.

The mattress B may also be of any desired form of construction. It maybe a mattress filled with cushioning material and may contain, ifdesired, springs or it may be formed of resilient material such asrubber, etc For the purposes of the present invention, it will beunderstood that the mattress may be formed in a variety of ways and froma variety of materials. In the specific illustration given, I have showna mattress filled with a latex body I5 having recesses I5a formedtherein. A cover It` extends over the top of the resilient mattress bodyI5. A side casing I'I extends about the sides of the mattress and thelower portion of the mattress is provided with a border strip I8 ofsubstantially the same width as the border strip I4 of unit A.

The strip C of muslin or other material is stitched to the ends of thestrips I I and I8 as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3 so as to provide acommon casing closing the bottom of the mattress B and the top of thespring unit A. At the same time, the strip C draws the border strips I4and I8 inwardly so as to maintain them in taut con'- dition and thus toseal the pocket space between the strips M and I8. By employing a muslinor inexpensive casing C to unite the border strips I4 and I8 about theunits, a considerable saving in expensive material is accomplished whileat the same time an attractive structure is .produced in which themattress is maintained always in true alignment with the box spring unitA therebelow. With this structure, a single stitching operation suces tounite the border strips I4 and I8 with the inner casing member C.

While the casing C may be formed of muslin or other inexpensive sturdymaterial, and in this way a considerable saving is accomplished, it willbe understood that other cloth materials may be used and, if desired,either of the strips I4 or I8 may be extended entirely across thestructures to provide an integral casing C and in this event, the otherborder strip would be stitched to the continuous strip extending acrossthe top of unit A or bottom of mattress B.

In the preferred assembly operation, the unit A is enclosed by the coverI3 and at the same time the mattress portions Il and i8 are formed, theinner portions of the mattress casing l1 being stitched to the muslinstrip C and to the inner portions of the box spring border l. The insertI5 for the mattress is then placed over the casing A and the bordercasing I1 is drawn about the sides of the mattress body l5. The topticking or cover I6 may then be stitched to the top of the side stripcasing Il, the usual tape being employed in this operation.

Operation In the use of the combined mattress and box unit structure,the muslin strip C serves to maintain the units A and B in truealignment while at the same time the tension exerted by the strip C uponthe border portions lil and I8 of units A and B tends to aid in thedrawing of the mattress downwardly into close relation about its bordersto the box spring unit therebelow. At the same time, the border portionof the mattress provides a resilient flange which may be lifted, asillustrated in Fig. 7, to expose the pocket space therebelow so that thesheets, etc. may be readily tucked into this space. The lateral depth ofthe pockets aifords ample room for the surplus portion of the sheets,etc. and at the saine time the V-shaped inner recesses where the muslinstrip C is stitched to the portions iii and I8 provides a firm grip uponthe sheets or covers, etc. The resilient flange afforded by the mattressportion tends also to grip the sheets, etc. and to lock them securely inposition. With the structure shown, sheets of smaller dimensions, etc.may be employed effectively because the resilient ange provided by theborder portion of the mattress is effective in securing the marginalportions of the sheet firmly within the pockets. There is no tendencyfor the mattress to become bent along its sides because the mattressdoes not protrude at any time over the sides of the unit A therebelowand thus after long use the mattress still retains its even lines due tothe maintaining of the marginal portions of the mattress in accuratealignment with the marginal portions of the box spring unit Atherebelow.

The combined mattress and box spring structure described may be made atlower cost than the separate mattress and box spring units while at thesame time a superior product is obtained, affording better means forlocking marginal sheet portions about the mattress and aording means formaintaining the mattress and box spring structures in constantalignment. While I have described the invention particularly inconnection with a mattress and box spring structure, it will beunderstood that the invention is also applicable to davenport beds,sofal beds, studio couches, day beds, and similar structures. As alreadypointed out, the spring unit portions and mattress or cushion portionsmay be formed in a great variety of ways and of diiferent materialswhile utilizing the invention.

While in the foregoing specication I have set forth a singleillustrative embodiment of the invention in considerable detail, it willbe understood that such details of structure may be varied widely bythose skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

I claim:

1. A cushion and spring structure comprising a spring unit and a cushionunit, a cover for said spring unit having a border strip extending in-Wardly from the sides of the unit, a cover for the cushion having aborder portion extending inwardly over the bottom thereof, and a commoncover connecting said border strips and extending between the two units,said border strips and common cover strip providing a sheet-receivingpocket between said units.

2. A mattress and box spring structure comprising a box spring unit anda mattress unit, said box spring unit having a cover extending about thesides thereof and inwardly a spaced distance along the top of the boxspring unit to provide border strips, a cover for said mattressextending over the top and sides thereof and inwardly of the bottom toprovide bottom strips, a muslin strip stitched to the border strips ofsaid box spring and mattress units and serving to draw said borderstrips inwardly under tension, said border strips `providing betweenthem a sheetreceivingr pocket,

3. A mattress andV box spring structure comprising a box spring unithaving a cover extending over the sides thereof and inwardly alongmarginal portions of the top thereof, a mattress of lesser depth thansaid box springs and consisting of a rubber body having a coverextending about the top and sides thereof and having marginal portionsextending along the bottom of said mattress, and a tie member secured tothe border portions of said covers at opposite sides of the mattresswhereby sheet-receiving pockets are provided on opposite sides of saidcombined structure and said mattress' providing a resilient ange abovethe pocket.

4. A cushion and spring structure comprising a spring unit having acover extending along the sides and over a marginal portion of the topthereof, a cushion unit having a cover extending over the top and sidesthereof and over a marginal portion of the bottom thereof, and a tiestrip secured to the marginal portions of said cushion cover and springcover and maintaining said marginal portions under tension to providesheet-receiving pockets along the sides of said cushion and springstructure.

HARRY S, KARPEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,312,411 Hopkes Mar. 2, 1943FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 438,066 Great Britain Nov. 11, 1935

